CaptainBiz

Establishing a business in India or expanding it further is no easy feat. In addition to streamlining complex operations like inventory management, sales, billing, and accounting, Indian businesses must also ensure GST compliance and move towards digitization. 

Most small and medium enterprises in India lack the resources and expertise required to take their business to the next level. Moreover, most businesses neither have the tools nor the inclination to upgrade their business technology due to the complexity and costs involved.

Thankfully, today there are several solutions designed to address the common needs of Indian SMEs, and that too at nominal prices. This review will focus on CaptainBiz,– an inventory, sales, and invoicing software created specifically for the Indian market. This cloud-based software has garnered massive praise and acceptance from small and medium businesses due to its user-friendliness, innovative features, and attention to detail.

So let’s dive in to discover what this application is about, shall we?

Introduction to CaptainBiz

CaptainBiz is an easy-to-use purchase, sales, and inventory management solution for small and mid-sized Indian businesses. Validated and recommended by India’s GST authorities (GSTN: Goods & Services Network of India) for both GST and Non-GST businesses, this application is designed to streamline business operations digitally while ensuring compliance and reducing business complexity.

CaptainBiz allows you to take your business online in these simple steps — 

1. Create your Company Profile
2. Add Customer & Supplier List
3. Upload Product Master
4. Create customized sales and purchase invoices

By just completing the above steps, you instantly make your business go digital.

CapatinBiz offers an integrated platform for managing inventory, sales, distributors, suppliers, products, billing, and GST invoicing. This cloud-based solution helps businesses track, control, and manage multiple processes, including stock movements and transactions in real-time, and effectively integrates with other accounting software like Tally, Zohobooks, etc. This means that all your reports can be generated in Excel and exported to software like Tally and Zohobooks. 

CaptainBiz comes with a mobile application and has an in-built GST compliance module to address the unique needs of Indian SMEs. The mobile app is an extension of your CaptainBiz account, helping you quickly create and share invoices. The application also helps you to track inventory in real time, monitor cash and bank transactions and keeps track of due payments while on the move. The mobile app can also be used as a barcode scanner for managing and maintaining stock.

Using CaptainBiz, you can export transactions in real time, and it provides the most accurate real-time data and reports to your CAs for timely GST filings. The application also works seamlessly with POS systems and barcode scanners to streamline inventory.

CaptainBiz allows all invoices created to be shared or exported instantly via email and Whatsapp. Your inventory is automatically updated in real time and can easily be adjusted for surplus/deficits. The centralized application helps you gain quick visibility about your suppliers and customers, including their transactions and outstanding while providing you with real-time reports and dashboards. What’s more, the basic version of this application is 100% FREE!

Now that we know what CaptainBiz is capable of let us know the key modules & features that make it stand out.

Key Features of CaptainBiz software solution

There are several interesting features of CaptainBiz that make it a hit with Indian SMEs. These are described below:

1. Easy Setup

Perhaps the unique thing about CaptainBiz is how it sets you up for business. Whether your business has a GST number, you can easily register yourself on their cloud application. Once set up, you can add users, CAs, bank accounts, products, parties, and companies in a few simple steps. Once you add your GST number on CaptainBiz, your business details are automatically populated from the GST portal. You can also create document sequencing numbers auto-populated on your invoices and choose between three (‘nearest,’ ‘upward,’ and ‘downward’) rounding-off options.

2. Multi-company & multi-user Roles

CaptainBiz allows you to add multiple user roles for each business unit you own. You can create multiple companies with different products/services and parties and assign different ‘admins’ and CAs to take care of them. You can also set up different company logos, signatures, and details for various business units.

3. Dashboard

Once you log in to CaptainBiz, the default page you see is the ‘Dashboard’ page that offers you a snapshot of your business. Besides viewing real-time sales reports and figures graphically, you can also view your debit or credit for a given period and find out about outstanding invoices, sales, and collections. You can also view the status of your bank account and cash in real time.

4. Easy Products/Services Configuration

CaptainBiz enables you to add your products/services manually or in bulk. For bulk entries, you can download the Excel format given within the application, fill out details like unit price, product code, barcode, etc., and upload them into the system. You can also search for products/services, apply filters to your search, extract details in Excel and view data transfer status, purchase invoices, transaction history, and real-time stock values.

5. Vendor/Party Management

With CaptainBiz, you can digitally manage your business transactions with multiple suppliers, distributors, and clients. You can add such parties in bulk or add them manually to the system and add multiple shipping/billing addresses and bank details. In the case of manual entries, CaptainBiz automatically fetches the details of your party once you add their corresponding GSTN number, saving you a great deal of time.

The application helps you check the outstanding for each party and pull out receipts in a matter of seconds. All collections, payments, remittances, and bank statements can be looked up and extracted in Excel or PDF format.

6. Purchase & Invoicing Management

CaptainBiz empowers businesses by allowing them to create detailed purchase orders and invoices digitally. You can choose suppliers from the list of parties created or add them manually for different products or services. Users can view their current stocks in real-time, place orders, calculate discounts, and add conditions while creating purchase invoices. Apart from customizing the given invoice template, you can generate invoices from purchase orders directly, change the quantity, and add details. The application also allows you to copy, edit, print, email, make payments and return purchase invoices.

7. Flexible Payments

CaptainBiz can store multiple bank details for speedy transactions and work with petty cash. You can view the details of both your cash and bank balance in the application, along with your collections, payments, stocks, and transactions. Through its user-friendly interface, you can also view the credit and collections for all corresponding accounts.

8. Simplified GST Filing

Another important advantage of CaptainBiz is its ability to extract your business details automatically and calculate GST figures in real time. Additionally, the system can adjust payments according to the losses/damages updated in the system and levy taxes according to the pin code provided. This means that CGST/SGST calculations happen independently without any human errors or interventions. Also, the system can generate GSTR1, GSTR 3B, and GSTR 4, which greatly reduces your workload. All GSTR reports are updated automatically and can be extracted after each transaction made on CaptainBiz. 

9. Data Reconciliation

CaptainBiz allows you to compare your cash and bank statements with your existing digital records for easy data reconciliation. You can compare the two statements to find out data mismatches and duplications not to impact your business later.

10. AWS Cloud Security

The longevity of your business depends immensely on how safe your data is. CaptainBiz secures your business data with AWS Secure Cloud, considered the gold standard in cloud security. This ensures that your data is never hacked, leaked, or misplaced while being stored on the cloud.

Apart from the above features, CaptainBiz also features a stellar support team that helps businesses set up accounts and move their data over to the cloud, much to the delight of new users. It also offers several training videos for customers to get guidance on CaptainBiz’s power-packed features.

The Final Verdict

CaptainBiz is a feature-rich inventory, purchase, sales, and invoice management application that simplifies compliance and offers SMEs greater control over business functions.

Users can export transactions in real time and switch between companies in multiple locations. Using the application, you can create GST and business health reports in real time and focus more on business growth and expansion.

With CaptainBiz, you are constantly aware of stock movements and sales figures, while your CA gets automated financial reports for quicker reviews and calculations. GST authorities have officially prescribed the application for Indian businesses as it provides state-of-the-art security and offers some of the most valuable features relevant to SMEs.

The above features and functionalities make CaptainBiz a must-have application for any business looking to streamline operations, reduce hassles, save time, and grow swiftly.